Far be it for me to say good riddance but the unbelievable lack of public sympathy upon the death Manto Tshabalala-Msimang last Wednesday is remarkable.

Manto was the minister of Health down here from 1999 – 2008. She was kicked out by Jacob Zuma during the palace revolt of 2008 which forced Thabo Mbeki to leave office.

Manto was an ‘AIDS denialist’, she promoted Mbeki’s theories that HIV did not neccessary cause AIDS and that a healthy diet of beetroot, garlic, African potatoes and olive oil would save them.

Researchers from Harvard University laid the deaths of 350000 people at her door and that of her political master, former president Thabo Mbeki.

It was 3 or 4 years ago that Manto jumped the queue and recieved a liver transplant, it was reported that she died of complications with her new liver while waiting for another one!

“She fought an application in the Constitutional Court for the roll-out of nevirapine, then the leading drug for the prevention of mother-to-child Aids transmission.” (here)

On hearing of the death of Tshabalala-Msimang, (Gareth) Cliff put up a Twitter posting which read: “Manto is dead. Good. A selfish and wicked bungler of the lowest order. Rotten attitude and rancid livers – all three of them…”

“On her watch, the public health sector deteriorated to medieval levels.” and “”The minister did not care a bit. After all, the people who used the public health system were just poor South Africans who knew no better.”(here)

“her quirky approach on nutrition and the failure to roll out anti- retroviral drugs with the required speed.”(here)

“Manto Condolences from your 2 best friends. We will miss you and your support. RIP from Johnny Walker and Jack Daniels.” (here)

And finally from a full page article in today’s Sunday Times “The only tears shed as we bury Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, who has died at 69, should be for the hundreds of thousands of people who died because she refused them, and pregnant mothers, the drugs which probably would have saved them.”

Of all the concerns I’ve read and heard about us hosting next years World Cup (accommodation, stadiums, transport infrastructure, etc.) this has to be the zaniest.

One of our national news bulletins reported on their lunchtime news that the Dutch are worried about a possible condom shortage and have urged their expected 12,000 traveling supporters to bring their own!

“Concern that the country might run out of condoms has escalated fears of massive spread of HIV/Aids.”